Bridging developmental systems theory and evolutionary psychology using dynamic optimization |
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| Authors: | Willem E. Frankenhuis Karthik Panchanathan H. Clark Barrett |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Developmental Psychology, Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands and Cognitive Development Center, Central European University, , Budapest, Hungary;2. Department of Anthropology, University of Missouri, , USA;3. Center for Behavior, Evolution, and Culture, UCLA Department of Anthropology, and FPR‐UCLA Center for Culture, Brain, and Development, University of California, , Los Angeles, USA |
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| Abstract: | Interactions between evolutionary psychologists and developmental systems theorists have been largely antagonistic. This is unfortunate because potential synergies between the two approaches remain unexplored. This article presents a method that may help to bridge the divide, and that has proven fruitful in biology: dynamic optimization. Dynamic optimization integrates developmental systems theorists’ focus on dynamics and contingency with the ‘design stance’ of evolutionary psychology. It provides a theoretical framework as well as a set of tools for exploring the properties of developmental systems that natural selection might favor, given particular evolutionary ecologies. We also discuss limitations of the approach. |
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